Marian Sparks – Jump for the Rose

Texas jumper Marian Sparks began jumping in 2006 at the age of 51 and by now she’s up to 2020 jumps, calls Skydive Spaceland home and has no plans to hang up the rig. Marian has competed in 4-way and 10-way at Nationals and has quite a few 100+ ways to her name. She’s a state, national and world record holder – coach and mentor, and a feisty member of SOS (Skydivers Over Sixty).

In 2009 Marian was diagnosed with breast cancer. Following a divorce in the prior year, she was without health insurance, facing challenging surgeries and treatments. Houston’s largest breast cancer facility, The Rose, stepped up to take care of Marian. The Rose is a clinic dedicated to helping women survive breast cancer, regardless of their ability to pay for treatments. Having been on the beneficiary end, Marian wowed to pay the clinic back, once back on her feet. This was the start of Jump For The Rose (JFTR). To date, Jump For The Rose has raised over $85,000, broken five skydiving records, set two national women’s records and one women’s world record. Each year the event grows bigger and 2015 will be no exception to that. JFTR is a full-fledged non-profit corporation with a board of directors manned exclusively by skydivers. DeLand canopy manufacturer Performance Designs, Inc is a long time supporter of JFTR. This year they are offering up a limited edition breast cancer design canopy. $500.00 of each canopy sold go directly to JFTR. Models included in this promotional offer are Sabre2, Spectre, Silhouette, Pulse, Stiletto, Storm and Katana. To place an order, contact Marian directly via email (marian@jumpfortherose.com). The order must be received by September 1st, 2015. Four immediate production slots are available for this unique canopy – order before the end of the month to have your canopy in time for the Pinkfest Mini Boogie at Skydive Spaceland come September!

Marian plans to continue to host the Pinkfest each year, and other dropzones are joining in. Skydive North Florida and Skydive Dallas will be on the schedule next year. Inquiries about hosting a JFTR fundraiser are welcome – send inquires to Marian via email. If you are not able to make it to an event but would like to make a donation, please visit the team fundraising page.